WINDOWS AND MIRRORS
A Tapestry of Faith Program for Children
SESSION 10: SERVICE IS THE RENT WE PAY FOR LIVING
BY BY GABRIELLE FARREL, NATALIE FENIMORE AND JENICE VIEW SUSAN LAWRENCE, MANAGING EDITOR/DEVELOPMENTAL EDITOR AISHA HAUSER, CHILDREN AND FAMILIES PROGRAM DIRECTOR/DEVELOPMENTAL EDITOR
© Copyright 2009 Unitarian Universalist Association.
Published to the Web on 11/8/2014 11:55:30 PM PST.
This program and additional resources are available on the UUA.org web site at
www.uua.org/religiouseducation/curricula/tapestryfaith.
SESSION OVERVIEW
INTRODUCTION
Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth. — Shirley Chisholm, African American politician and activist
Service is the rent we pay to be living. It is the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time. — Marian Wright Edelman, president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund
Two 20th-century African American activists—Shirley Chisholm and Marian Wright Edelman—popularized the saying that titles this session, inspiring us to regard service as a noble duty. The story at the heart of the session, "Arjuna's Service to His People," illustrates how public service work can be hard, underappreciated, controversial, unpleasant and risky. Yet, we are all called to sustain our community by working at the tasks required to feed, protect and nurture us all.
This session focuses on service in terms of occupations which are difficult to do, yet crucial to a stable society. Police officers, firefighters, military personnel, politicians, public administrators and many others face challenges, even dangers, because they choose to work in service. Participants will learn that whether or not they agree with a particular politician or support a war the U.S. military is fighting, those who do the public service jobs in our society deserve our acknowledgement and gratitude.
In this session, make sure conversation about all service jobs remains respectful. Model your belief in the inherent worth and dignity of all individuals as well as your appreciation for those who do difficult jobs that benefit us all.
Activities 3 and 4 involve the same arts and crafts materials. You may wish to introduce Activity 4, Making Cards for Veterans in Hospitals, as soon as some of the children finish their Window/Mirror Panels (Activity 3).
GOALS
This session will:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Participants will:
SESSION-AT-A-GLANCE
Activity | Minutes |
Opening | 5 |
Activity 1: Story — Arjuna's Service to His People | 15 |
Activity 2: Brainstorm Survival Needs | 10 |
Activity 3: Window/Mirror Panel — My Service to Others | 10 |
Activity 4: Making Cards for Veterans in Hospitals | 15 |
Faith in Action: Service Project for Congregation Staff Member | |
Closing | 5 |
Alternate Activity 1: Making Cards for Service People in Our Community | 15 |
SPIRITUAL PREPARATION
Find a place where you can be quiet with your thoughts. Make yourself comfortable; light a candle to mark the time as different from your other activities. Close your eyes and breathe deeply and perhaps repeat one word or phrase to separate yourself from the activities of the day.
Think about the ways you provide service to the greater good—that is the Mirror question for this session. Consider the Window question, as well. How do you value and acknowledge others who do service work that benefits us all? You may wish to use these questions for reflection:
Be prepared to share your insights with the children in the session.
SESSION PLAN
OPENING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
This ritual welcoming reminds participants of the relational nature of the group experience. Gather the children in a circle around the chalice. Invite them to take a deep breath and release it, and create a deep silence for a moment.
Ask a volunteer to take a reading from the Opening Words Basket and read it aloud. Invite another volunteer to light the chalice. Then, lead a greeting:
Now we will take a moment to greet the people next to us. If you are next to someone who is new to our group, offer a welcome, tell them your first and last name, and learn their name.
Lead the group in singing the hymn you have chosen. Singing a congregational favorite helps children grow in their sense of belonging in congregational life.
If you choose not to sing, use a bell to signal the group to still themselves for another moment of silence.
Ask the child who lit the chalice to extinguish it. Ask the child who read the opening words to return the reading to the Opening Words Basket.
Including All Participants
If you have a non-sighted participant who reads braille, obtain the braille version of Singing the Living Tradition from UUA Bookstore. The bookstore orders from an outside publisher, so order several weeks ahead.
ACTIVITY 1: STORY — ARJUNA'S SERVICE TO HIS PEOPLE (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Before you begin, ring the chime (or other noisemaker). Make eye contact with each participant. Read or tell the story. Follow the leader prompts in the story to make it interactive; do not skip the follow-up discussion.
Sound the chime again to conclude the story and discussion time.
ACTIVITY 2: BRAINSTORM SURVIVAL NEEDS (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the group to brainstorm the resources they need to survive. Write their ideas on the newsprint in the "Needs" column. Needs might include food, clean water, shelter, clothing, love, transportation, sanitation, schooling, recreation, safety, burial, hospital services, etc. Affirm all ideas that relate to basic quality of life needs all humans share. Gently deflect contributions that are "wants" more than "needs"—for example, telephone service might be a legitimate need, a new cell phone is not.
When the "Needs" list looks full, fill in the "Who Provides?" column. Help children identify people who meet the needs they have named. You might include parents, teachers, bus drivers, police officers, coaches, garbage collectors, public officials, funeral directors, doctors, EMTs, nurses, etc.
Engage the group to think about the different ways service gets done: When is service a paid job? When does service mean constant vigilance? Some needs are met by caregivers and family; adults in a home provide food, shelter and love. People whose jobs are to be on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year may meet some other needs on the list; law enforcement, medicine and utilities management (water, gas, telephones, electricity) always have someone on duty to keep us safe, mend our wounds and keep our day-to-day routine flowing. People who enter military careers embark on a regimented life; they must follow a strict code of conduct that includes wearing uniforms and taking orders from higher ranking officials.
Conclude with the observation that we depend on many people, some whom we will never meet, to do service jobs that ensure our survival.
Say, in your own words:
Every day there are people in our lives who do tasks that are unpleasant, stinky, scary or painful because they have accepted responsibility to protect and care for us. Unitarian Universalists are called to show appreciation and gratitude to the people who choose a path in life that benefits all of us.
Leave the newsprint posted for children to use as reference/inspiration when they work on their Window/Mirror Panels in Activity 3.
Including All Participants
Be mindful of children who may have a relative in some kind of service profession. Give participants the opportunity to share their experiences of these family members.
Make sure conversation about all service jobs remains respectful. Model the appropriate acknowledgement that service work is sometimes difficult or unpleasant, and often unseen or unappreciated by those who benefit from it.
ACTIVITY 3: WINDOW/MIRROR PANEL — MY SERVICE TO OTHERS (10 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the children to bring their Window/Mirror Panels to work tables. Distribute Window/Mirror Panel basket(s) and the pre-cut paper or card stock you have prepared.
Tell the group their assignment is to capture a mirror or a window view of their relationship with service work. Pose the Mirror and Window questions, or rephrase them to best guide the group's reflection and expression.
The Mirror question for this session is "What role does (or might) doing service for the greater good play in my life—now, or in the future?" You may wish to say:
Think about ways you have worked in service to others. Think about things you do at home, in school and here at our congregation. In what ways have you provided service to others? What professional job does the service you give, or want to give, make you think of? Maybe you can see yourself doing this kind of work when you are older.
The Window question is "What are ways I do (or could) express appreciation for the service I receive as a member of my family/community/society?" You may wish to say:
You might like to focus on acknowledging the service others give that maintains your life. You might show your appreciation by representing some important services or the people who provide them, on your Window/Mirror Panel.
Explain that participants can express how they relate to service work now, or how they would like to relate to service work in the future.
Direct children to the newsprint from Activity 2 to help them recall the service jobs they had thought of and the people who do them. They may use the pre-cut paper or work directly on their Window/Mirror Panels. You may wish to remind them about magazines available to cut up which may have images of service providers at work.
Warn children when they have several minutes left, to allow enough time for them to attach smaller pieces to their Window/Mirror Panels.
If you are not doing Activity 4, Making Cards for Veterans in Hospitals, next, ask the group to help clean up and put away the Window/Mirror Panels and arts and crafts materials.
ACTIVITY 4: MAKING CARDS FOR VETERANS IN HOSPITALS (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Engage the group to send wishes and prayers in cards to hospitalized military veterans. Say in your own words:
We will be making cards of appreciation and good wishes for men and women who have served our country in the military. Some of them have risked their lives. All of them have chosen a job that helps to protect us and our country.
Ask, "Why is it important to acknowledge the service of others?" Allow some comments.
Ask, "In what way can we show our gratitude on a postcard?" Invite the children to think of messages to write on the cards. Write their contributions on the newsprint you have posted.
You may wish to clarify that veterans may be in a hospital for a war injury or for a reason unrelated to their military service. Explain that once a person becomes part of the military, they are entitled to some public support for the rest of their lives; that is one way society shows its gratitude.
Let the group know exactly where the cards will be going. Talk with children while they make the cards.
CLOSING (5 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Explain that the session is almost over and we now have to work together as community to clean the meeting space. First, everyone should clean up their own personal area, put away materials they were using and store their Window/Mirror Panel. Then they may clean another area or help someone else. No one should sit in the circle until all are done.
Then bring the group back to the circle. Ask them to think about what happened today that was good or what they wish had gone better. If you are running short of time you can ask them for a "thumbs up" or "thumbs down" on the session.
Invite each participant to say, in a word or sentence, why it is important for them to be a part of this faith community. You may go around the circle for responses; allow individuals to speak or pass.
Then ask everyone to hold hands and say together:
Keep alert;
Stand firm in your faith;
Be courageous and strong;
Let all that you do be done in love. — 1 Corinthians 16
If this is the first time the group is using "namaste," briefly explain its origin and meaning. Then, lead the group in the word and bowing gesture. Or, substitute "thank you." Invite each participant to bow their head to the individuals on either side and then bow to the center of the circle and say "thank you" together.
Distribute the Taking It Home handout you have prepared. Thank and dismiss participants.
FAITH IN ACTION: SERVICE PROJECT FOR A CONGREGATIONAL STAFF MEMBER
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Outline a service project the children can do for someone who serves the congregation with hard work which may be underappreciated.
Engage the group to talk about how the congregational facility is maintained. Who takes out the garbage? Who is in charge of the recycling? Who mops the floor? Who tidies the sanctuary after worship and puts away the chairs after coffee hour?
Guide the children to identify someone, perhaps the congregation's custodian, whose work the group can do on a Saturday, Sunday or school vacation day (a day when enough participants and adult volunteers will be available to fulfill all the worker's regular responsibilities). With the appropriate congregational leader(s)' permission, invite the person to take a paid day off.
Including All Participants
Be mindful of accessibility issues. If anyone in your group has limitations of movement, offer them a job they can accomplish.
LEADER REFLECTION AND PLANNING
Reflect on and discuss with your co-leader(s):
Approach your director of religious education for guidance, as needed.
TAKING IT HOME
Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth. — Shirley Chisholm, African American politician and activist
Service is the rent we pay to be living. It is the very purpose of life and not something you do in your spare time. — Marian Wright Edelman, president and founder of the Children's Defense Fund
IN TODAY'S SESSION...
We explored the concept of duty and the importance of jobs that serve for the greater good. The children learned that our Unitarian Universalist faith calls us to respect and appreciate people who accept the responsibilities that maintain a healthy, safe, stable society—for example, firefighters, law enforcement officers, military personnel, teachers and sanitation workers. In this session's Hindu story, the celebrated warrior Arjuna is called to lead a war he does not want to fight—a war against some of his own kinspeople. The story shows how service can be hard, underappreciated, unpleasant and risky. Nevertheless, there are times we all may be called to duty, in order to help feed, protect or otherwise sustain our community.
We talked about various jobs done at home, in our community and in our congregation that help all of us, and we talked about who does these jobs. The children wrote cards of appreciation which we will send to hospitalized military veterans.
EXPLORE THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Talk about...
Household chores and why they are necessary to keep the household running smoothly. Talk about specific chores, who does them and how they help the family as a whole.
EXTEND THE TOPIC TOGETHER. Try...
See if you can identify the people in your community who perform needed services, particularly the risky, unpleasant and difficult jobs. You might mention military service people, sanitation workers, funeral directors, water or electric utility workers, police officers, firefighters, assisted living staff, hazardous waste clean-up professionals, bus drivers, teachers or public administrators. How many of these individuals can you identify by name? What are some ways you do, or could, express appreciation of the service they do? What are some ways you could contribute to the jobs others perform on your behalf?
A FAMILY RITUAL
If your family gathers for prayer, meditation or a grace at mealtime, make it a point to include in your spoken thoughts people who serve in the military—whether or not you approve of the specific, current work of our U.S. forces. If saying a blessing for those who serve in the military is difficult, talk together about why that is so. Acknowledge that service jobs can be unpleasant or even controversial. Talk about why some people do service jobs anyway, and make sure children have a chance to voice their perspectives.
ALTERNATE ACTIVITY 1: MAKING CARDS FOR SERVICE PEOPLE IN OUR COMMUNITY (15 MINUTES)
Materials for Activity
Preparation for Activity
Description of Activity
Invite the group to make colorful thank-you cards for people who perform needed services in the community.
Decide with the group who they will make cards for. Refer to the list of needs and the service people who meet those needs they brainstormed in Activity 2. They might consider sending cards to the local police department, the staff of a local clinic or emergency room, your community's library staff or the fire department.
Distribute card stock and arts and crafts materials for children to share at work tables.
As they work, ask the group to think about the work the recipients of the cards do. How does it feel to acknowledge these people? At the end of the activity ask the group to offer a moment of prayer of gratitude.
WINDOWS AND MIRRORS: SESSION 10:
STORY: ARJUNA'S SERVICE TO HIS PEOPLE
Adapted from the Hindu Baghavad Gita.
This story is an ancient Hindu tale. It is important to tell the story interactively, as guided. The prompts and follow-up discussion questions will help you elicit children’s thoughtful responses to the tale.
Here is a story from the Hindu tradition. A long, long time ago in India, there was a king with two sons. When the king died, Older Brother was entitled to inherit the entire kingdom, but Younger Brother was jealous. Older Brother graciously divided the kingdom in half, to share with Younger Brother. But Younger Brother was still not satisfied and stole the whole kingdom for himself and his children. He refused to share the land with Older Brother—unless there was a war.
Older brother and his children did not want to fight, but they had only two choices: to fight for their rights, or to turn away from war, and their rightful land, to preserve peace and nonviolence.
One of Older Brother’s children was Arjuna, a famous warrior. He had a special relationship with the god Krishna, the god of all gods. Krishna called Arjuna to lead the battle. Of course, Arjuna dutifully came to the battlefield to obey. He had led many battles successfully for Krishna before.
But Arjuna was shocked to see who was getting ready for war on the other side. The people who were called his enemies were, in fact, his own family. Not only his uncle—Younger Brother—but also Arjuna’s cousins, some of his uncles, his favorite teachers and very dear friends. He did not want to kill them and was very confused that Krishna—the god of all gods—had called him to lead this war. He was especially confused since Krishna had always said, “The most important thing for a good person to do is to avoid harming any living thing.”
Leader: Pause and ask, “Think about that statement: ‘The most important thing to do is avoid harming any living thing.’ Do you agree with that? Does it sound right to you?” Allow some brief responses; affirm all. Continue the story.
As a warrior, Arjuna’s duty sometimes required him to kill. That was hard. But this time, it was an even harder problem. Arjuna argued and argued with Krishna because he wanted to be a good person, he wanted to do his duty, yet he could not stand the thought of doing violence against his relatives and friends.
Krishna told Arjuna many stories to persuade Arjuna to do his duty as a warrior. In one story, there was a hermit who lived in the woods who always told the truth. One day an evil robber chased a merchant into the woods. The robber asked the hermit if he knew where the merchant was hiding. Because he always told the truth, the hermit pointed and said, “Yes, I saw him going that way,” causing the merchant to die. Krishna said, “If there is a choice between two good behaviors—for example, telling the truth because it is right or lying to prevent someone from being killed—some good behaviors are better than others. In this case, wouldn’t it have been better for the hermit to lie, and protect the life of the merchant?”
Leader: Pause and ask, “What do you think? Did the hermit do the right thing or not? Should he have lied?” Allow some brief responses; affirm all. Continue the story.
In another story, Krishna told Arjuna about farming couple who worried that the weather, their seeds and their tools would not be good enough to create a good crop to feed their family. Because of their worries, the farmers decided not to work their land at all—in the same way that Arjuna was refusing to fight the war. But Krishna said, “The best thing a person can do is their duty, to the best of their ability, without worrying about the results. A farmer—or a warrior, Arjuna—should not worry about the outcome. To work is their duty and they must do their best. The farmers and their family would have nothing if they did not work at all.”
Leader: Ask the children, “What do you think of that? Have you ever felt like the farming couple? Have you ever been worried about the results so much that it was hard to do the work you are supposed to do? Some people feel like that about schoolwork, sometimes.” Allow some responses. Acknowledge that worrying about the end result can be discouraging when you have a duty to do.
Now ask, “How would you feel about doing the work you are supposed to do, if doing a good job might mean someone would get hurt? Is that a case where you really should worry about the outcome?” Allow some discussion. Continue the story.
Well, Arjuna was still not convinced that leading the battle was the right thing to do. He was pretty sure if he did his duty well, he would hurt people he cared about. He still did not want to do it.
Then Krishna had one more argument to convince Arjuna. He asked Arjuna to think about his father—Older Brother—and the rest of Arjuna’s family members who had been wronged. Hadn’t their land had been stolen? Were they not also his brothers and sisters, cousins and dear friends who needed Arjuna to fight and help them get their land back? Krishna said that fighting for your rights is an important duty. If someone does a bad thing to you, that person cannot be allowed to get away with it.
Krishna told Arjuna, “The best way to be a good person is to do your duty, see the goodness in all living beings, treat all beings equally, and do good things for others.” In these ways, Arjuna could be happy and have a closer relationship with Krishna. Arjuna wanted to be happy and stay close with Krishna, the god of all gods. Yet did not see how he could do all these things at once—not this time.
Leader: Ring the chime to signal the end of the story. Say, “Now we are going to practice listening and discussing skills—both are needed to help us understand the story from multiple perspectives. Let’s find out what one another thought about the story.”
Remind the group not to assume others share their opinions. Ask everyone to use “I think” or “I feel” statements. Encourage the group to listen to each comment and then share some silence. You may wish to use the bell or chime to move between speakers.
Begin a discussion by asking participants to recap Arjuna’s dilemma in their own words. Then, lead a discussion with these questions, making sure everyone who wants to speak has a chance:
Tell the children the Baghavad Gita recounts that Arjuna did fight. Many lives were lost and his side won. Then ask:
Allow some responses. Then, shift to a more personal discussion about the nature of service. Ask the children to name chores or tasks they may not like to do, but they know are their responsibility and serve the greater good. Examples might include cleaning chores or caring for pets at home, picking up litter in the playground or park, helping out with siblings and keeping most secrets. Be aware, some children do not have specific chores at home or elsewhere. You might suggest actions of service that reflect responsibility to the greater good, for example, recycling, refraining from littering and keeping quiet in the library and during worship.
Invite a few volunteers to share stories about their own experiences with service work. Ask whether any had any conflicts about a service responsibility, as Arjuna did in the story. Ask how they worked them out. Ask who or what they relied on to show them their service responsibilities, as Arjuna relied on Krishna.
WINDOWS AND MIRRORS: SESSION 10:
LEADER RESOURCE 1: LETTER TO BOARD OF TRUSTEES
Adapt this letter to seek permission for participants to take on some duties of a congregational staff member and invite the staff member to enjoy a day off.
Dear (Name of Board President)
The 4th and 5th grade Windows and Mirrors group is learning about the importance of valuing the people who do service occupations for the benefit of us all. As a Faith in Action project, we want to do the work of our congregation’s custodian, (name of custodian), for one day.
We are requesting permission for (name of custodian) to get a paid day off. We will take responsibility for completing that day’s duties.
Sincerely,
(Signatures of co-leaders, participants and adult or youth volunteers who will take part
FIND OUT MORE
Find out how to send cards and care packages to retired veterans or active service personnel on the US Department of Veterans' Affairs (at www.va.gov/) website.
Unitarian Universalists serve in the military both as regular personnel and as chaplains. Read more in an April, 2007 article by Leah Rubin-Cadrain in UU World (at www.uuworld.org/news/articles/22319.shtml).